The days of my childhood were spent watching shows on PBS. I'd start out my day with Sesame Street, then Romper Room, The Polka Dot Door, and finally Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.
Sesame Street back in my day didn't have Elmo, and I'm almost thankful for that. My son doesn't watch a lot of Sesame Street, but when he does, Elmo is constantly on the screen. When I was his age, Big Bird had an "imaginary" friend named Snuffelupagus. Snuffy is no longer imaginary. Everyone can see Snuffy now, which kind of takes away the mystique surrounding him. Osca
r is still grouchy and Cookie Monster still scarfs down his cookies (although he was the Fruit Monster for awhile, and that's just wrong). Super Grover still saves the day and Mr. Hooper's store is still running even though he has long since passed.Romper Room was also one of my favorites. I used to get mad when she didn't see me in her magic mirror. Luckily, Heather is a pretty popular name for my age group and she "saw" me often enough that it wasn't a huge issue. It was probably the show I learned the most from since I could say the Pledge of Allegiance when I was 2 (although I did admittedly say "Underdog" instead of "Under God").
I don't remember much about the Polka Dot Door, but I know there were some puppets and a door they would peek into to see a movie clip of some sort. There was also a lot of songs and I would sing along and dance. I don't remember much about the human hosts of the show, but they weren't the focus anyway.
And of course, there is always Mr. Rogers. Nowadays, he may be seen as a little creepy and I don't think he would have gotten his own show. I loved how as soon as he walked through his door, he'd put on his sweater and change his shoes. I always wondered where he went at the end of the show when he'd put his dress shoes and jacket back on and leave. I did usually lose interest, however, when Trolly came by and took us to the puppet world where Mr. Rogers did a very poor voice change to be that scary looking cat puppet.
I often wish some of these shows were still around and they would hold my son's attention, but alas, everything is slicker, faster, and usually more animated. They just don't make simple children's shows like they used to.
Answer: Mr. Rogers
